Dobbs Ferry, Pt. 2

We all know Joe loves to use bunches of flash, but you know there is a real logic to it. Sometimes it is for shaping a subject, or crushing the sun, but more often than not it is to overcome the use of multiple layers of diffusion. You can see in the above image the we had 3 SB800s with diffuser caps firing into an umbrella then into a 3x3 Lastolite panel. Yeah, take that hard light triple diffusion! So how many stops of light are we loosing? My guess is somewhere around 3 as the umbrella was white not silver. So to maintain a nice working power and aperture we are looking at having to toss in more light.

Here he has the three SB800s mounted on the soon to be released Lastolite TriFlash


The thing I personally realized watching Joe work with all of his equipment is that to truly make images you need tools. I know everyone reading this blog is reading Strobist as well (and if you're not you need to). So it is easy to fall into always trying to use less or to make the tools ourselves. But after having an arsenal of tools on hand and at my disposal I'm now investing into more modifiers, accessories, and the like. If you are like me you hate spending money on this stuff. I don't know why I just do. I like toys that pop, are noticeable, and have that effect where you just sigh when you see them. You know, a new lens, a new body, a SB900. I mean when was the last time you got excited over a role of cinefoil or a reflector?

I guess the point of all this is to not over look our light shaping tools. And while we examine those think of the effect on the power of light you have. Do you have enough to triple diffuse your lights? If so do you have enough left over to hit your background or to kick in as some fill? I don't want this to seem like a call to buy more gear, but the right tool for the right job is key otherwise what you envision for your images will suffer in the long run. So invest your pennies wisely!